Brooklyn Tower to Be City's First All-Renewable Residential Building

Co-op and condo board members who want to know what the future will look like should pay a visit to 100 Flatbush Ave. in Brooklyn. There, a glass-skinned, wedge-shaped residential tower, a project of Alloy Development, will be the city’s first electric residential tower powered by 100% renewable energy, Real Estate Weekly reports.

Brooklyn-based Alloy recently issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) that seeks to partner with a community solar developer to enroll 100 Flatbush in community solar projects that will secure a 100% renewable energy supply for the building. The 44-story project is part of the first phase of the Alloy Block, a mixed-use development that will comprise five old and new buildings and will provide residential, office, cultural and retail space, as well as the city’s first two public schools designed to meet Passive House compliance. Construction of 100 Flatbush, which Alloy also designed, recently reached the halfway point and is expected to be complete in 2024. Local green energy non-profit Solar One is advising Alloy on the RFP through its Here Comes Solar program.  

The issuance of the RFP comes just weeks after the city's Department of Buildings released draft rules for compliance with Local Law 97, confirming that developers will be able to comply with the law through off-site solar programs. Alloy is the first developer to pursue such a program following the rule issuance.

Local Law 97, passed in 2019 as part of the city's ambitious Climate Mobilization Act, requires building owners, including co-op and condo boards, to reduce their buildings' carbon emissions to specified levels beginning in 2024 — or face stiff fines. The carbon limits become stricter in 2030 and 2035. 

“All-electric buildings powered by local distributed solar projects are an inspiring vision for New York’s energy future, and Alloy is building that future today,” says Noah Ginsburg, director of Here Comes Solar at Solar One. “Local clean distributed energy systems are central to New York City’s clean energy transition, and also provide important public benefits like good jobs, lower electric bills and, of course, better air quality. Solar One is proud to support Alloy’s work in creating a model sustainable development for New York City.”